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New Year Embroidery Giveaways

As the new year approaches, do you have any goals to learn or perfect a skill next year? If embroidery is on your list, read on! Learn a New Skill Starting January 1st, I’m running another round of my popular Beginning Hand Embroidery class. In this class, we cover a dozen basic embroidery stitches that
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Lakewood passementerie class

18th c. Passementerie Classes – Paris & Lakewood

In the last few years, I’ve discovered I LOVE teaching and seeing how excited my students are to learn new skills. Online classes are all well and good, but there is something special about being able to connect in person.  In September I had two great opportunities to teach 18th c. passementerie & “fly” fringe
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Embroidery Inspiration – April Showers Bring May Flowers

Spring is finally here in the PNW, and not a moment too soon! In honor of May Day, here is a round up of embroidered items that capture the pastel loveliness of springtime. Let’s start with this fragment of embroidery featuring a trellis full of tulips, daffodils, and other flowers, from 1860-80. While not exactly
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Embroidery Inspiration – Chenille

Chenille is one of my favorite styles of embroidery, because it creates a lush, velvety surface while being a very easy technique to master. It’s all in the thread, and true chenille thread is as soft and fuzzy as the caterpillars it is named after. Somewhat resembling a pipe cleaner, chenille thread is made of
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The Historical Costumer’s Etsy Gift Guide

Christmas is almost here, and I’ve gathered together a list of items on Etsy that I’d love to see under my tree. They might be just the thing for your favorite historical costumer, as well! *Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission
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Matching an All-Over Design

Matching design elements up neatly is one of the topics I get the most questions about. It can be a bit intimidating, so in this post I want to show you a real life example of matching up one of my designs. First, in case you’re thinking “of course her examples are going to be
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18th c court suit embroidered with pansies and roses on violet velvet

Embroidery Inspiration – Violet and Violets

It’s springtime, the lilacs and pansies are in full bloom, and the only thing I’m missing is a patch of delicate wild violets. They’re one of my favorite springtime flowers, and sadly, I have none in my current yard. Obviously, I need to fix that! In the meantime, let’s take a look at all manner
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Embroidery Giveaway – 1821 Floral Border

Happy May Day! I can’t knock on your door and leave you all flowers, but I can make sure that this month’s giveaway includes a beautiful bouquet. This design is based on an illustration published in the October 1821 edition of Ackermann’s Repository of Arts, Literature, Commerce, Manufactures, Fashions and Politics. It is one of my earliest
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18th c court suit

Embroidery Inspiration – 18th Century Embroidery Styles

The 18th century was a glorious time for embroidery, and a sample from that era ends up in nearly every one of my Embroidery Inspiration posts. However, individual items don’t really give you an idea of what was happening during the century. So this week, let’s take a walk through the timeline of 18th century
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School monogram sampler

Embroidery Inspiration – Monograms

Can you imagine a household filled with monogrammed napkins, pillowcases, silverware, lingerie, luggage, and more? Having grown up in a home completely devoid of monograms, it feels delightfully exotic. This week, let’s take a look at embroidered monograms for the home and wardrobe. Monograms served a practical purpose, of course, to link together the object
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